Tanzania: All fuel filling stations across the country will use Electronic Fiscal Devices 

 

6 May 2014

Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA) has embarked on measures to ensure that fuel filling stations across the country use electronic fiscal devices. Talks are still going on with fuel filling station owners and other stakeholders to ensure compliance, according to the TRA Director for Taxpayers Services and Education, Richard Kayombo. He said that the devices to be introduced in fuel filling stations would be installed within the pumps and will automatically issue receipts to buyers.

 

“We are still in negotiations with owners to chart out logistics for efficient implementation,” Mr. Kayombo told members of the Tanzania tax writers network (Tawnet) at a seminar on tax issues conducted by TRA at the weekend.

 

The cost will relatively be huge for owners of many petrol stations because every pump will have to be installed with the device. “We are looking on the possibility of whether a single EFD can be installed and work concurrently with more than one fuel pump,” he added.
 
 
Source: Corporate Digest

Pakistan: FBR to have real-time access of sale, purchase data

 

To implement the changes announced in the Federal Budget 2014-15, the FBR on Thursday issued SRO 608 (I)/2014 and said that registered retailers are required to install and operate FECRs, and to issue invoices only through the machine to their customers.
 
It also said that retailers will provide seamless and real-time access of their FECRs data to the FBR and also allow on-site physical inspection as and when authorised by the commissioner Inland Revenue having jurisdiction.
 
The FBR said that registration for a retailer is mandatory where: it is operating as a unit of a national or international chain of stores; or international chain of stores; operating in an air-conditioned shopping mall, plaza or centre, excluding kiosks; who has a credit or debit card machine; whose cumulative electricity bill during the immediately preceding 12 consecutive months exceeds Rs600,000; and a wholesaler-cum-retailer, engaged in bulk import and supply of consumer goods on wholesale basis to the retailers, as well as on retail basis to the general body of the consumers.
 
The FBR said that registered retailers specified will be liable to pay sales tax at normal rate and would observe all the applicable provisions of the act and rules made there under, including the requirement to file monthly sales tax returns.
 
The retailers who do not fall under the normal tax regime will pay sales tax through their electricity bills and the power supply company would collect the sales tax on behalf of the revenue body.
 
However, the commissioner of Inland Revenue has been empowered to restrict the power companies from deducting sales tax on a request received from a person not engaged in retail business.
 
The FBR said that the power companies will not adjust the sales tax collected through electricity bills and power companies are responsible to deposit full amount of the sales tax collected through bills to the treasury.
 
The persons who are paying sales tax through electricity bills would be treated as the final discharge of liability by them. Furthermore, they would not be entitled for any input tax adjustment or refund.
 
The retailers falling under the normal tax regime would be subject to audit as per the normal procedure, the FBR said, adding that the retailers operating under the final tax regime would be exempted from audit.
 
 
Source: The News, Paskistan

 

Tanzania: Traders warned against use of unregistered EFDs

 

18 August 2014

Use of unregistered Electronic Fiscal Devices (EFDs) is illegal and will draw severe legal penalties, traders have been warned. The warning was issued over the weekend by the Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA) whose officials say hefty penalties will be levied against the perpetrators.
 
Speaking to this paper over a telephone interview, TRA’s Director for Taxpayer Services and Education, Richard Kayombo confirmed that there are traders using unregistered EFDs which he described as ‘fake gadgets not legally recognized by the law’.

“We are going to conduct random inspections throughout the country and stern legal measures will be taken against anyone proved to use these fake EFDs,” Kayombo warned.

 

The development comes in the wake of last week’s findings that implicated the marketing and advertisement firm, CI Group’ in Dar es Salaam of using a fake EFD machine. In a dramatic turn of events, Fasad Nasoro, Owner and director of CI Group was arrested during a random visit of his firm by Deputy Minister of Finance, Mwigulu Nchemba mid-last week. The machine he is accused of operating and which he was found in possession of, had serial numbers 031TZ 54000053.

“We are dragging them to court…they are attempting to cheat the government out of its due revenue through tax evasion,” Kayombo, TRA’s Director for Taxpayer Services and Education accused the firm.

 

Kayombo further asserted the authority‘s determination to have all eligible traders use the machines as required by the law.

“EFDs are meant to enable the government levy appropriate taxes and ease the collection process…they also help the business owners keep accurate records of their transactions and for clients to have receipt evidence of purchases,” he explained urging all traders who haven’t yet begun using the machines to do so.

 
SOURCE: THE GUARDIAN

Tanzania: Use of EFDs doubles revenue collection – TRA

 

11 August 2014

The Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA) has reported more than double increase of revenue collections in just three years, an achievement the agency is associating with increased use of Electronic Fiscal Devices (EFDs).
 
TRA says the business community in the country is now increasingly more complacent with the use of EFDs which they had previously rejected.

“The growing willingness of businesses to use EFDs is a direct result of awareness campaigns along with enforcement efforts conducted throughout the country,” TRA Director for Tax Services and Education, Richard Kayombo explained. “As a result, between July 2010 and June 2013 we have seen our revenue collection increase by 59 per cent,” he revealed in an interview with this paper at the turn of the week.

 

The Director for Tax Services and Education said now that they are better informed, response to the use of machines by the business community’s is very positive.

“We have had a number of workshops with members of the business community on the importance of the machines and the response is increasingly positive,” he said. “Though we do not have the exact figures, as to the increase value but more and more businesses are using EFDs and revenue collections are also increasing,” Kayombo said noting that the system will continue to increase revenue collections as the number of traders using it continues to grow.

 

He said the authority is currently targeting to enlist at least 200,000 traders in the second phase of their awareness campaign which started late last year.
 
However, other than the efforts by the authority, Kayombo acknowledged that sustainable use of EFDs is also very much dependant on consumer’s ability to demand for receipts for every purchase done.
 
The use of EFDs previously received wide spread rejection by traders countrywide. In February this year, shops in Dar es Salaam’s Kariakoo, Mwanza, Morogoro, Mbeya and Kagera regions remained closed for at least two full days, that being one of many previous protests against the EFDs.
 
Speaking to journalists in Dar es Salaam during that protest period, Dar es Salaam Business Community (JWK) Chairman Johnson Minja had at the time said the traders are not against paying taxes but rather they are against the method being enforced on them.

“The EFDs are not friendly to traders,” he argued warning that “… the Value Added Tax (VAT) of 18 per cent is too high and can lead to businesses folding up.”

 

Also at that time, the Kagera Region Business Community Chairman Amini Kyaruzi told a news conference in Dar es Salaam that the community had been urging the traders not to protest without success.

“The government should ensure it creates a friendly environment with traders,” he said.

Commenting, a Mwanza based businessmen Ngowi Miwani said: “This is a very bad system and if the machines are to be used businesses will collapse and the economy of the country will fall.”

As the protest went on, complacent traders were increasingly threatened by others and the Mwanza Regional Commissioner Evarist Ndikilo was forced to order police protection for them.

“Those who do not want to use the devises should not intimidate those who are ready to use the EFDs,” he said.

 

Similar incidents were reported in Morogoro, Mbeya and elsewhere in the country despite legal requirement on the use of the EFDs.

In response, TRA conducted various awareness campaigns to increase the knowledge of business communities across the country on the use and benefits of EFDs, efforts which are now seen to bear good fruit.
 
 
SOURCE: THE GUARDIAN